This invention relates generally to systems for unscrambling ferromagnetic coil springs from a random pile, and more particularly, to a system which unscrambles the springs by means of a traveling electromagnetic field, and which supplies the springs to a work station.
Coil springs are generally provided in random disorder in a container. Upon being removed from the container, the springs are disposed on a random pile from which the springs must be removed and ordered prior to being fed to automatic processing machinery. One type of known arrangement organizes springs and distributes them to feed tubes by means of guiding grooves utilizes compressed air to remove the springs from the random pile in a chance process. The springs are transported in the guiding grooves by operation of compressed air or vibratory motion. Alternatively, the prior art unscrambles ferromagnetic coil springs by means of traveling electromagnetic fields which deposit the springs into horizontal magazines which are adapted to accommodate the springs.
It is, therefore, an object of this invention to provide a system for physically separating isolated coil springs from a random pile of springs, and which transport the springs to a processing station.